Obama Tells Interviewer Not to “Underestimate” Trump

President Barack Obama has been a harsh critic of President-elect Donald Trump, but as Inauguration Day approaches, he had some last minute comments about his successor that shocked everyone.

Although the president didn’t think Trump’s “improvisational” campaign style would work as well for a commander in chief, Obama told Steve Kroft on “60 Minutes” that people shouldn’t “underestimate the guy,” suggesting that Obama thought Trump could be a capable leader.

In particular, Obama believed it would be a “test” to see if Trump and the people he has chosen for his team would be able to execute his vision for the country.

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CBS aired a segment of Obama’s interview Friday morning, during which the president also noted that Trump was one of the most “unconventional” candidates in United States history.

However, the comments were not without some criticism, as Obama called the Republican’s campaign “improvisational” — something that he believed would not work for Trump in the White House.

When asked by Kroft whether a president could run an “improvisational” executive office, much like the way Trump ran his campaign, Obama responded, “I don’t think so.”

But the president offered some optimism to those who have been unsure about Trump’s administration in that we shouldn’t “underestimate him because he is going to be the 45th president of the United States.”

During the campaign season, the media, political opponents and other critics often made the mistake of underestimating the Republican candidate, which obviously backfired on them as he was largely successful, among not just Republicans, but other political affiliations too.

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It’s nice to see Obama respecting the fact that — although Trump’s election was largely an overwhelming rejection of the last eight years — the Republican will be the next president and we should all want the best for him because it’s what’s best for the country.

Watch a segment of the interview here:

The hour-and-a-half interview was the last “60 Minutes” piece for Obama before he leaves office on Jan. 20, and it will air in its entirety on CBS on Sunday.

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